Captain Who Glory Some Harry Potter References
by The Green Faerae
Summary: Gloreander Zwiers, ace reporter for the Caster, uncovers a dark magical threat while investigating a kidnapping. To further compound the mystery, a mysterious man who calls himself the Captain has appeared out of nowhere, who may be London's only hope.
1. Prologue

I'm a reporter. I've been trained to maintain a skeptical air at all times. I've dedicated my life to the pursuit of truth for the enlightenment of the people. I never read those gossip rags like the Quibbler or the Star. My world be enwrapped in magic, but it's not a bloody fairy tale. And yet here I am about to spill my guts to you, reader. I can't believe I'm about to tell you this story. If the shoe were on the other foot, I'd laugh in your face. Hell, I doubt this article will ever see the ink of the Caster's pages, or even a footnote in the margins of the Prophet. But I've seen for a fact that there are some of you out there who will believe me. There are some of you out there who will seek the truth and they will find him just as I did. They will find the Captain, just as I did. So, although I am sure you will be reading this out of a page of the Quibbler, or the margins of one of Augustus Renaldi's books on the matter, not out of a reliable source, I still feel I have to tell it to you. For I am a reporter and I have to report this story.

Nikola Shirakawa

Allicile Cook

Captain Who

Glory by NT Thomas


	2. Glory

My day started off like any other day. I awoke from my small flat overlooking Diagon Alley, taking in the small events of the world below. A used book seller, trying to pawn off textbooks that have been outdated for about five years. The lonely marriage counselor, on her way to bore herself with the concerns of yet another struggling couple. A former Eater swabbing down tables at the local ice cream Shoppe. A frantic mother who put off buying her child's supplies until today. 

Of course. I'd nearly forgotten what day it was. I was dreading this day. Today the little kiddies boarded that old locomotive at Platform 9 3/4 to tally off the school. Was I bitter, or did I dislike children? Not in the least. My problem was simply that I had to go and cover the arrival of the students in Hogsmeade. I hate Hogsmeade. Nothing ever happens there. I'm a reporter; I need action, a good lead to pursue, a crooked politician, anything. Anything but a fluff piece about a bunch of tykes offloading at Sticksville.

Sadly I had drawn the short straw as it were. I would be accompanying little Creevy out to photograph the occasion. I hated dealing with interns. Just out of school, they're so damned excited about the slightest bit of conflict. I swear to God, I saw the kid snap a shot of a cat catching a mouse. But there was nothing else to document. Since they took out Voldemort a couple years back, there's been nothing exciting report. The Prophet had stooped so low as to fill their pages with columns by Potter and his friends. Back in the day, content like that would be grounds for immediate dismissal from any self-respecting paper. Jesus, I'd kill for a little excitement.

If I had leaned anything from my years on various beats, it should have been to always be careful what you wish for. Especially in our world. But that day I hadn't the mind to recall such a simple rule. And if there was ever a day to dwell on such a rule it was that day. You probably read about the fallout of that day. A kidnapping, a raging inferno, and generally bad feelings. But you won't know why they happened. That is a story only I can tell you.

I spent the day sitting around the Sticksville of Hogsmeade, doing nothing more than essentially twiddling my thumbs. But something drew me to the telegraph depot. Call it my reporter's intuition. It's the only thing that's kept me alive in the business for all these years. I dropped a couple of galleons for the weak tea I had been drinking. IT was much more than the swill was worth, but I was in a hurry. By the time I got there, I could see that no one seemed to be on top of their jobs. Typical bureaucrats for you. They didn't even seem to notice that ticking filling the air. I didn't know much about communications in transportation, but even a brain-dead kneazle could tell that was Morse code.

"Sir," I said to the dispatcher, who seemed too distracted to notice, "You've got a message coming in."

He straightened up with a sigh, and went to listen at the receiver. I couldn't see his face, but I did see his back straighten faster than I thought possible, and his shoulders stiffened. I could immediately tell that I had walked right into the best article I'd had since I covered the hippogriff abuse claims set by Willie Wickers daughter. Of course, that had been halfway through the summer, and I had had many more interesting stories, but the reports about scandal always sold papers fastest.

He started tapping away. I didn't know a thing he was tapping about, but I could get it out of him. More tapping from the other end, then silence.

"What was that?" I asked. "For my report?" He turned around, looking dumbstruck.

"I need to take a message to the school." He said slowly. I knew he was facing me, but I could tell he wasn't seeing me. I hate when people do that. "It's very important. I don't have time for this interview..."

"I can deliver the message." I said, taking a step forward, and thinking fast. "That way if another important message comes in, you won't miss it. And no one need know I delivered it except us as the recipient." Unless of course I can get more information from the source...

"Yeah," he started writing quickly on a piece of parchment, "that's a good idea."

He wrote down the message and handed it to me, along with a key. "That's the key to the front gate. No spell can unlock it, so you'll need that. Bring it back as soon as you're done. Nobody sees that except for the headmistress."

"Of course," I took the parchment from him, with my most promising smile. "I will get it there as soon as possible."

I turned as speed walked out of the station. As soon as I was far enough away. I unfolded the parchment. The fool hadn't even bothered to seal it. It took a second for the news to sink in, and I couldn't help but grin. Reporter's intuition had given me yet another award-winning article. Forget the arrival of the children, this was going to sell so many papers, the Prophet would never be able to catch up with us again.

I wasn't completely sure what time it was when I finally found my way to the staff room. It had taken me a while to find it for one, and I had checked along the way to see if I could find anyone. I knew I was sure to find someone in the staff room, but I wanted to get this message to someone, and get as much information as I could as soon as possible.

I probably shouldn't have checked around too much then, but how was I supposed to know that the castle would be empty aside from that room.

"I'm sorry to interrupt," I said sweetly as I entered the room, of course I wasn't really sorry, "but I have a message." I handed it to Headmistress McGonagall, and didn't bother to leave in a big hurry. There was no better time for an interview than at Event Zero. People would always be caught off guard, and information would flow like water.

She stared at the parchment for a long time. I could tell the news would be taking a little while to sink in. I noticed her breathing became slightly staggered. If I didn't know better, I would swear her heart had stopped beating.

"The meeting is over," she said, choking on the words. "There will be no dance. I will explain soon. Nymphadora, you should stay. Hermione, you should remain her as well. You may be of some help."

Everyone else slowly rose to their feet and left. McGonagall seemed to stare into space, eyes full of tears and rage in equal amounts. She turned to the other professors for a moment, and then she turned suddenly to me.

"Can I help you with something," she asked in a very acidic tone. I could tell she had already begun putting up a guard. It wouldn't be as easy to get the lowdown now, but I still had to try.

I smiled at the headmistress, completely unbothered by her lack of respect; after all she was in quite a situation right now. The child's parents would be furious with the school for not posting guards on the train. Not to mention the trouble this would cause for Hogsmeade station.

"I was wondering if I could get a few questions in." I said, in a polite tone, "You see, I'm a reporter with The Caster, and I wanted to-" I stopped myself from completing even the thought. The look on her face was a look I remembered from my school days. It was the same look she would give a student who had just cast a tickle charm on another student. It immediately told me not to go any father with her, at least not right now. "How about I come back some other time, hmm."

On that note, I excused myself. There was no more information I would be able to gather here. At least, not openly. I remembered from my days here that the staffroom was in bad disrepair. In fact, the walls were so thin just behind the Ravenclaw banner, that you could hear every word that was said inside. I slid behind the banner and pressed my ear to the wall. I could easily make out McGonagall's voice as she spoke to the other professors.

"There is a woman named Lucille Feranse," She said with a quite audible lump in her throat. "You may recognize her name. She attended Hogwarts on two different occasions, and the second time she held a strong hand in recovering the school from an invasion by a group of early Death Eater wanna-be's. She has a shield in the trophy room. I'm sure you know what for without me telling you."

Her voice was starting to shake.

"She turned on everyone when she found out her brother died in the invasion. Since then she had gained power, and I hear she even has a small following. Hermione, as the Dark Arts are your expertise, I would like you to do some private investigating. Find out everything you can about this woman. I don't care how you do it; just make sure no one finds out. Nymphadora, I have to tell you right away. There is a chance that the student kidnapped was Annabelle Tonks."

I smiled as I heard this detail. I had enough now to go on. I speedily departed from the school and caught the next portkey back to Diagon. I figured the back alleys of Knockturn would be an ideal place to start my search for this Feranse woman. It was night by the time I finally caught sight of an odd sight.

An extremely harassed looking woman was holding a piece of parchment out to a little girl with pink hair. Wait, hadn't the Deputy Head had pink hair at one...

"My god," I hissed. The woman stood up straight, and I immediately held my breath. Has she heard me or had the child simply finished reading?

The woman turned toward me. I had nowhere to hide; she was standing in front of the only alley on a road full of unsheltered doorsteps. I tried my best to look like a random passerby, but not everyone can afforded to wear cream colored dress robes on a stroll through town. She must have seen me for what I was because of that fact, because next thing I knew, she grabbed the child tightly, hollered something that sounded like "Piridea" and then started making rapid clicking noises.

I looked around me, and saw spiders coming from every direction. Thousands of them.

Spiders were crawling up my legs, little tiny ones, and three the size of my hand. Even a fat on the size of my two fists together crawled up my front, I swiped it off while I grabbed for my wand, but it fell to the ground and was enveloped by spidery legs.

When I looked back to the woman, she had disappeared, and been replaced by another. One of the giant spiders dropped into my field of vision, and clicked his fangs, preparing to bite me, I was sure.

I screamed in terror, thinking this was the end. And it very nearly was, if not for the sudden sound of one word that changed my world forever.

"Run," urged an American voice.

There, almost out of nowhere, was an oddly dressed man. He looked to be roughly in his mid-thirties, and was tall and almost lanky. He was dressed in an odd attire to say the least. He had on a thick woolen green sweater, and those odd blue pants that were popular among Muggles. Jeans, I believe they were called. Covering this was a long brown canvas coat that looked to be out of one of those "western" stories.

He led me, almost pulling my arm, up an alley, with the spiders in hot pursuit. Every once in a while, he would turn his left hand back towards the spiders. In that hand, he was holding some odd sort of wand. It was about 7 ½ inches long. From the 2 ½ to the 5 ½ inch mark, it appeared to have a stony texture, with a blue line running up the side. There were two bumps at either end of the line, and above the stony texture was a glass tube where a black coil can be seen. At the end of the wand, there was a blue dome. At the held end of the wand there was a black casing about half an inch in length. When he held it back towards the spiders, he pressed one of the bumps and the dome glowed with a blue light and a loud shrill that seemed to drive the spiders back.

"Through this door," he said with a rushed tone. I noticed him pull out what looked like a scorched egg and throw it down the alley. After we moved through the door, he turned around and used his wand on the doorknob. I heard the lock click shut. Finally, my mind was in a calm enough state to formulate the coherent thought that I was agitated.

"Excuse me," I said. "But who the Bloody hell are you?"

"I'm the Captain," he said, paying more attention to our motions up the alley than me. What the hell kind of answer was that?

"The captain," I repeated. "Captain who and what exactly are you the captain of?"

"Just the Captain," he said.

"The Captain," I said with disbelief.

"Hi there," she said with an impish grin. I wanted to punch him dead in the face at that moment.

"Well I am Gloreander Zwiers," I said, with a haughty tone. "Reporter for the London Caster and I demand to know just what the hell is going on!"

"Right," he said as we continued to walk. "It looks like that witch kidnapped some little girl. Not quite sure about that, it's not what I'm here for. Powerful magical charms all around the area. Too powerful for humans, I would say. Probably not. Not many humans can summon Guardians. Now that door will take you back to safety. I bid adieu, Mademoiselle Zwiers."

He turned and quickly headed up an alley. I moved to follow, but I lost sight of him. Then I heard two odd things fill the air. First, there was this odd whooshing sound that sounded like a "vworp, vworp" mechanical groan. This was accompanied by a strong wind. After this sound faded, there was a loud explosion. I quickly glanced back towards the alley where we had run from, and saw that it was completely engulfed in flames.


	3. Fired

Still somewhat frazzled over the encounter, I made my way towards the door he pointed out to me. Just as I was about to open it, an odd glimmer caught my eye near the base of the door. I knelt down and picked up a small scarlet diamond. No, it wasn't a diamond, not up close. Up close it was some odd sort of crystal the likes of which I had never seen before. I pocketed the gemstone and opened the doorway.

The smell of fresh ale filled my nostrils, as I entered the side entrance to the Cauldron. I looked around the room. No one seemed to have heard the explosion. I sighed as I wandered past the bar to the door back to the main entrance to Diagon. I did not need to be here. I had sworn off the sauce after I let loose a hot tip to a close friend while we were drinking one night. I could still recall that night...

"No one really knows what happened," Alison said as we threw back a couple of shots of fire whiskey. "It was like instant. We wouldn't have known it happened but the eater's marks just started burning."

"So no one at the Prophet knows what's going on," I slurred. "That's good news."

"Why would you say something like that," she asked me.

"I just heard that the Ministry picked up a pair of students," I said, trusting my best friend. "Rumor is, they're the friends of the Potter boy."

"Really," she said. "That is good news for the caster and you isn't it. You want a lift over there?"

"Oh that would be wonderful," I told her. "Let me pick up the tab real fast."

"Sure," she said. "I'll be outside."

By the time I got out there, she had used the power and scooped the story out from under me. The Prophet sold three million copies within the first forty-five minutes, and the Caster lost about a dozen subscribers. Allison Hatt, My former best friend, became the Prophet's top reporter, had an office that took up a half a floor with a view that covered the better portion of London, and I was stuck in a cubicle, barely making ends meet.

"I shouldn't have sent you out to the bloody school," my editor told me the next evening. The Portrait News Network was ablaze, no pun intended, with news of the explosion. "My best investigative reporter and I had you out doing a fluff piece on the Hogwarts Express."

"Don't worry about it, chief," I said. "You see, I…"

"No, you don't have to say a thing," he said. "I'll give you better assignments."

"You're not listening, chief," I said. "I was there in the alley. I was literally right around the corner when the flames went up."

"You were," he said, his face becoming as bright as a kid on Christmas Morning. "We're saved!" he said, throwing his hands in the air and smiling. "So, where's the article? We can put it out immediately and snatch the Prophet's business right out from under them!"

"The article," I said, realizing I forgot to actually write the thing. "Well, it's not exactly finished."

"Ah," he said, the wind being shot right out from his sails. "Well that's all right, you finish that last paragraph and we'll still have it out in time for the newsstands."

"Well, I have a little more than that to polish," I said awkwardly.

"By a little," he said, his voice beginning to grow irritated. "Am I to take it you haven't started it yet?"

"Well, yes, but…" I could feel my face burning with embarrassment.

"Save it, Zwiers," he spat. "You were at Ground bloody Zero, and you don't have so much as the byline written? I have had it with your incompetence losing stories and subscribers to the Daily bloody Prophet!"

"Chief, if you just…"I spluttered

"No, Gloreander. Not this time. Pack up your things. You're fired."

I threw the box on my ratty old couch as I breezed into my flat. This was one of the worst days of my life. I sighed, as I pulled out the odd crystal. I tossed it onto my nightstand as I went into the kitchen to prepare my dinner. As I melted some butter in a skillet, I heard an odd clatter by my door. A bloody stray owl must have flown in through the bird window by the door. I thought I'd locked the thing.

I felt a shudder shoot up my spine as I began to draw the curtains. The window fell out onto the floor. Something had melted the hinges and the lock. It looked as if a fireball hit the area. My survival senses told me to sneak out the bedroom window, but I couldn't give up my curiosity that easily. I slowly drew the window shade and glanced out the window to see a truly startling sight…

"You," The Captain said, surprised.

"You," I said right back.

"I guess I should say Salutations, then," he said. "What are you doing here?"

"This is my flat," I hissed. "I live here!"

"Why?"

"Because I do," I said angrily. as I opened the door. I hated talking through a bloody window.

"The tracer must be acting up," he said, examining his wand, which was giving off that odd shrill and that blue light. "You wouldn't be part specter would you? No, you're as alive as a newborn baby. Well, see you later."

"Not so fast," I said, dragging him into my flat by the sleeve of his coat. "I'm only home because my editor fired me for not having an article finished, which it would have been if not for the delay you caused!"

"I caused," he said. "Wouldn't it have been later if those spiders had got you?"

"Not necessarily," I retorted, still tugging on his coat sleeve. "Besides, I'll get my job back with a raise when I get an interview from you."

"Be glad to oblige," he said with a slightly impish grin. I just wanted to give him a good slug for that. But I pushed my feelings under control as I cleared off a chair for him to sit.

"Butterbeer," I asked, letting go of his coat and heading towards the kitchen.

"Got anything stronger," he asked me.

"Sorry to disappoint you," I said a little venomously.

"Then it will do nicely," he said.

"After we get done with the interview, we should speak with the Ministry," I said, getting out a couple of mugs to pour the butterbeer. "Both of us, I mean. I've gotten too many suits brought against me for failing to do that little step."

"That's a fine way to go if you want to get the kidnapped child killed," he told me.

"Look, I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier," I said, trying to butter him up to get more information out of him. "I don't blame you for the situation, even if that fire was some sort of charm mixed up. The Prophet scooped the story from me, you know, they even said a couple of bodies were found. Quibbler's running rumors that it's the rebirth of You Know Who or his followers. Total rubbish, mind you. But this'll get Allison back with interest. I want to know exactly what we need to tell them. I mean, I'm not even sure what was happening. So I want you to explain what happened, down to the slightest detail, and maybe even a little about yourself…"

"Do you have your own owl," The Captain suddenly asked.

"No," I replied. "Could never afford one or the upkeep of one on the measly salary the Caster pays me. But I have had trouble with strays flying in through that window."

I threw some biscuits on a tray and carried it out there, where The Captain was standing as stiff as a board. I didn't think much of it at the time, but the crystal was glowing steadily.

"Relax," I told him as I picked up my mug and began to sip. "These old furnishings are comfier than they look. You know, I didn't even catch your name, other than Captain. What was it?"

Suddenly, the Captain's wand began glowing and shrilling and he fell to the ground. The crystal shot into the air, and around it formed the spectral image of the woman who had sent the spiders. Seeing her face in more detail, I recognized it.

"Lucille Feranse," I said in shock, as the specter, using surprisingly tangible arms, grabbed me by the throat, choking the life out of me. The Captain recovered and began struggling with the specter, trying to pull her off of me. She effortlessly pushed him off and through my coffee table. He shook his head and pulled out his wand. Fiddling with something on the side of it, he used it and shoved it right into the back of the specter. She let out an ungodly shriek as she disappeared and the crystal fell to the ground.

"It's all right now," the Captain said, tossing the dull crystal to me. "Shut down the simulacrum. That settles it, though. Your 'Feranse' woman is definitely receiving help from an outside source. You humans aren't going to master crystal magic for some time yet. Let me see that."

I handed it back to him, and he pocketed it, rising to his feet. He then turned and left the flat, in a surprising hurry.

"Wait just a bloody moment," I said, chasing after him. "You can't just flutter off after something like that."

"I can so," he said, not stopping for a second. "Take a look. This is me, just fluttering off after something just like that."

"That crystal took the form of a wanted criminal and tried to kill me," I said.

"I know," The Captain replied. "That's why I'm taking it with me for testing."

"You can't just leave like that," I protested. "You have to tell me what's going on."

"I have to do nothing of the kind, Mademoiselle Zwiers," he replied.

"But that's just not fair," I said with a bit of a whine.

"Life isn't fair, kiddo," he said with a slightly roguish tone.

"Fine then," I said, crossing my arms. "I'll go straight to the Ministry and tell them all about what happened, and all about you. Now you said that would get the kidnapped student killed, right? So it's all up to you, Captain, my Captain. Speak up, or I will."

"Is that supposed to sound like a threat," he asked me as he raised an eyebrow.

"A little bit," I replied.

"Well it doesn't work," the Captain said. "Not even a little bit."

"Just who are you anyway," I asked.

"I already told you," he said. "I'm the Captain."

"Yes," I said. "You told me that, but I wanted your name. Captain who?"

"Just the Captain," he told me again.

"Captain," I said, slightly in disbelief.

"Yeah, now you've got it," he said with that infuriatingly impish grin. Although, what was staring to aggravate me, was it wasn't as infuriating as it had been before…

"Is that supposed to sound impressive," I asked him, partly to drive such thoughts from my mind.

"A little bit," he replied.

"Come on," I asked him, keeping up with his wide strides. "I've seen a lot worse. Why don't you just let me in on what's going on so I can help you? Are you an Auror?"

"An Auror, me," he said with a chuckle. "No, I'm just a visitor, who happened to be passing through the right place at the right time."

"That was the second time Lucille Feranse tried to kill me," I said, the thought just dawning on me. "Why am I such a threat to her?"

"Now that's awfully conceited, isn't it," the Captain said. "Suddenly, the center of the world is Miss Gloreander Zwiers? You were just the opposite, in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"She tried to kill me!"

"She was after me, my dear, not you. Last night, I was observing her hideout, planning an infiltration when your nosy self went snooping in, just about ruining my operation. Then tonight, I was tracking her signal, as she was no doubt tracing mine, and she tried to kill me. You just got in the way. The only reason she is trying to kill you is because you've been thrown in with me."

"So what you're saying," I said, following closely. "Is that the center of the world is you, Captain?"

"I guess so," he said with a smirk.

"You are so full of it," I said with a laugh.

"I guess so," he said with the same smirk.

"Are you working on this by yourself," I asked him.

"Well who the hell else you think would be involved," he said. "Your kind spends all their time playing games and working out new spells to make your lazy existences even more convenient, all the while ignoring the war going on beneath your very noses."

"Why don't we start from the beginning," I said. "If that was a ghost of Lucille Feranse, which wouldn't make sense since she physically choked me, how could you kill her?"

"It was a magical apparition receiving a biotechnical signal from the real Lucille somewhere far away, giving it life. I projected a low level magic nullification field around the crystal, cutting off the signal, killing it."

"So it's like that thing the Muggles use," I said. "What's it called radio?"

"Not exactly," The Captain replied. "It's a telepathic signal."

I paused, dwelling on that thought a moment.

"You all right," the Captain asked.

"Yea, I'm fine," I said. "Why would Lucille Feranse be using magic like that just to kidnap a harmless Hogwarts student?"

"I don't think she is," He said. "As I said before, crystal magic is not something you humans will be able to do for quite some time."

"So there's someone else controlling Lucille," I said frowning.

"That's a big 10-4, kiddo," the Captain said with a warm grin.

"But then who's controlling her?"

"That's a very long story," the Captain said. "And we may not have much time."

"Why would they go to the bother of controlling a criminal whose biggest crime was kidnapping a little girl? Is the girl another Potter?"

The Captain laughed.

"Not by a long shot," he said. "It's not a mob war."

I couldn't help myself and I began to laugh a bit. It was just such a ridiculous moment.

"They're distracting the professors at the school to get their hands on an artifact at the school powerful enough to overthrow humanity and conquer the world," he said. "Do you believe me?"

"Of course not," I said, brushing my hair back.

"But you're still listening," he said with a smile. I stopped and looked at him as he wandered off towards an old wardrobe that was sitting on the curb.

"Really though," I said. "Who are you?"

He paused and looked at me.

"You," he said. "It's like back when you were little, not knowing about the magical world, then and you hear about it, and you find out that just behind the wall of a pub, or the pillar of a train station, there's an entire other world squeezed between the cracks of the non-magical world, latching on and holding tightly."

He reached down and held my hand tightly.

"I can feel the tension. These two worlds are constantly pushing against each other, pulling away, tied together by only the thinnest of bonds, threatening to separate from each other, ripping apart the world as you know it. And caught in the middle of it is us, grasping on tightly to a world that is grasping on tightly to another world, and if we were to let go for a second…"

He dropped my hand.

"That's who I am," he said. "Now forget all about me Gloreander Zwiers and go back to your life, safe and sound."

He turned and walked away. I pushed a shiver down my spine as I watched him go. I turned around and began to walk home. As I got halfway up the path, a gust of wind caught my attention and I turned around as I heard that odd mechanical groan. I ran back towards the curb I has saw the Captain walking towards, but when I got there, the wardrobe, and the Captain were gone. They had vanished without a trace. I shook a shiver back and turned around to go home.


	4. The Captain

The next morning, having a new amount of free time on my hands, I set out for the Painting Link, the newest place to get research worth half a damn. I had to admit, the premise was rather neat. Word is, a couple of Muggleborns had come up with the idea in imitation of something the Muggles called the internet. But we, of course, could use it to such a better extent. The way ours worked was special paintings were made with a special set of characters painted in. they were able to quickly move across to every other painting, similar to some degree, to what they did now, just greatly faster and more focused. I slid into a seat in front of a nice mahogany portrait with this Butler character in it.

"What are you searching for today, Madame," the butler asked.

"What can you find me on a 'Captain'," I asked him.

"There is several paintings that link up to famous captains," the butler said. "Can you be a little more specific?"

"Try Captain Spirit Crystal," I suggested.

"There is a painting to a Captain Steven Radcliff, who sells crystals carved to capture the spirit of holidays. Is this what you wanted?"

"No," I said, thinking. "Try Captain Old Wardrobe."

"There is a painting that links up to a man named Augustus Renaldi who is searching for information on a mysterious man who calls himself the Captain. Is this what you were searching for?"

"That does sound like it could be useful," I said. "Can you give me Mr. Renaldi's address?"

With this information in hand, I left the café and moved to wait for the trolley. My broom had been out of commission for some time, and the place was by far too much of a walk. As I waited, I overheard this girl's voice. She couldn't have been more than sixteen. Specifically, a couple of words she said stood out; Lucille Feranse. From what I gathered the kid had snuck out of school to search for the kidnapped student. Thinking quickly, I knew that his interview would secure a Pulitzer when I got this article published.

"I can help you find her," I told the girl. "The name is Gloreander Zwiers, but you can call me Glory. What's yours?"

"Taryn," the girl said. "Taryn Dorre. How do you know this Feranse woman?"

"I've been seeking out information for an article," I told her. "In fact, I'm on the way to meet a guy who knows about this man who calls himself the Captain. This Captain is closely involved in some way with Feranse, so if we find him, we find her, and we find your friend."

"What's the catch," Taryn asked. "Why would you let me follow you so easily?"

"You have to let me interview you for the article when we're done," I said. "I get my Pulitzer, you get your friend, and everyone wins. Now, come on, what do you say."

"Glory," she said. "You've got a deal."

The trolley ride took roughly fifteen minutes. We had to cross the whole of London to get to this guy Renaldi's place.

"Is it all right if I stay out here," Taryn asked when we got there. "I'm not so good in these situations."

"You weren't so shy back at the trolley station," I said with a sly grin.

"Well that was different," Taryn said. "It wasn't someone's home, it wasn't so personal. I'd just feel better if I could stay out here. Is that ok?"

"Suit yourself Tarry," I said. "I'll be back in a little bit."

"Ah Miss Zwiers," Renaldi said, with a somewhat distant tone. He reminded me of one of those old professors who couldn't seem to stay focused on anything in particular, mind always on some new project. "Good of you to come. Yes, very good indeed. The portrait said you were coming. Please, come in."

He led me into this dark, somewhat dingy room where various papers and such were strewn about.

"Quite surprised to see a real journalist such as yourself here," he said, moving some paperwork around. "Most of your mainstream media thinks I'm a bit nutters. But we'll show them, now won't we? Yes, ahem."

He handed me a dossier, full of various newspaper clippings and photos. I looked through them as he explained them to me.

"Once you start searching, provided you're looking for the right topic, this captain seems to appear all over our records. Everything from Quidditch transcripts to Ministry investigations, even in a few Muggle reports we've come across. We never get any sort of identification. There's no mention of any surname, or of any name at all, for that matter. Just "The Captain". That's always how he's noted. From what I gather, it's not a traditional rank like our defenses use, but rather a hereditary title, going from parent to child through the pages of history. Now this photo here is the Captain you're looking for, correct?"

The image was somewhat blurry, but I could recognize that big nose and somewhat impish smirk anywhere. That was indeed the Captain I knew.

"That image was enlarged to make it easier to read, but, taken from the newspaper article where it originally came from..."

The headline was from the last Triwizard Tournament that was held, the tournament where the Dark Lord returned and killed a student. The picture itself was of the horrified crowd of onlookers gathered around Diggory's body.

"Going back further, we have this family, the Rochester's. This picture…"

He showed me a shot taken of the captain next to a pair of finely dressed wizards.

"This was taken the day before they were set to move. The only way they could effortlessly make the move, however, was to drive the Muggle roads. According to their plans, they would have been on the bridge that was the last Muggle disaster related to the first reign of He who Must Not Be Named. And if that wasn't enough, check this out..,."

He showed me a painting that looked to be more than fifty years old.

"This painting was made by a Hogwarts student at the time, Myrtle. That very night, she was killed in what we know today to have been a Basilisk attack. This Captain has his mark on our history. You check a major event, there's a good shot you'll see his face somewhere around it. It's like he's been embroidered on the fabric of history. Devastation seems to bring him, and desolation follows in his wake. His one constant companion seems to be casualty. If he has come close to you, acting as your prodigal shadow, then may the gods save your soul."

"But who is this guy," I asked Augustus. "Who do you think this man is, really?"

"I think all these pictures and records are of the same man," Augustus said. "It's as if he had his very own Philosopher's Stone, because he never seems to age. No matter how much time has passed between sightings, he looks as young as he did the last time you saw him. I don't think he's human."

I quickly excused myself at this point. The man was grasping at the straws that rumor mills discard. The man was completely off his rocker. If I was going to get to the bottom of this mystery, I would have to find my answers somewhere else. I sighed as I went back to Taryn. Something seemed odd about her, but I couldn't place what.

"Well, I'm sorry to say this was a complete waste of time," I told her. "We'll have to look elsewhere for the information we need. I need something to snack on. Would you like to get some ice cream?"

"Ah a sugary treat," Taryn said. "Nice frozen iced cream."

"Or possibly a round of butterbeers, what do you think?"

"We are going to nourish ourselves on the sugary desserts," Taryn said. Something was off-putting about the way she said it, but I didn't really know the girl all that well, so she came off as just a little touched in the head. Regardless, we caught the next trolley back to Diagon and swung right for Fortescue's. Some new kid was working there, and was he ever rude. He almost seemed to think he was better than us, as he went out of his way to introduce himself as Draco. I ignored it as we made our order and sat down to eat.

"Here I am, once the greatest reporter in town," I said, with a sigh, gorging myself on pure sugar, which will, no doubt go straight to my thighs, with a littlie kid, no offense. I tell you, it feels like it just couldn't get any lower for me, you know?"

"So where did you meet this Captain," Taryn asked, almost hurried.

"Ugh," I moaned with disgust. "I don't even feel up to talking about that now."

"I bet it was somewhere around tat alley explosion, somehow he was responsible, am I right?"

"Why is this suddenly so important to you?"

"Come on, Ms Zwiers, you can tell me."

"A little bit, I guess."

"What was he doing there?"

"I don't really feel like talking about this. I mean, odd as it may sound, it just doesn't feel like it would be safe talking about it right now."

"Come on, Ms Zwiers, you can tell me anything and everything about it. What is the Captain planning?"

"Why are you asking me these questions?"

"Come on, Ms Zwiers, I can help you. That's all I'm concerned about."

"Here's the pie," a waiter said.

"We didn't order pie," Taryn said, banging the table a bit with her fist. She was looking me dead in the eye, not blinking. "I need to find the Captain."

"Pie, Madame," the waiter said.

"I didn't pay for it," I told the waiter while staring at Taryn.

"Come on, don't you want this tasty pie," the waiter pushed.

"Look, we told you…" Taryn began to say as she froze when she looked at the waiter. I glanced up at this point as well. With that slightly impish grin, there could be no mistake. It was the Captain.

"Didn't mean to interrupt," he said, taking a throwing stance. "But we're holding a nice special on a la mode orders today!"

He threw the pie dead at Taryn, hitting her in the face. As she wiped it off, her face came off with the pie residue. The face underneath was unknown to me, but the eyes stood out clearly in my mind. They were like fireballs, staring with contempt. I swear, they were literally smoking.

"All right," The woman said. "Let's do this."

She jumped into the air, extending oddly transluminent wings as she rushed the Captain. The Captain ducked and pulled out his wand, tuning it to an odd frequency. Suddenly with an audible rip, he severed his opponent's wings.

"That's the best you can do," the woman said with a laugh.

Thinking quickly, I pulled out my wand and sent out an evacuation call. We needed to clear the place out, post haste. The Captain grabbed the severed wings and we ran to the back, the woman in hot pursuit, throwing fireballs at us, and barely missing each time. As we blew out the back door, the Captain leaned up against the door and used his wand to seal the door. I rushed to the only nearby exit, a gate, but it was locked. I reached for my wand, but realized with disgust that I had lost in the escape.

"I need you to get over here and use your wand," I told the Captain.

"It's actually a sonic screwdriver," the Captain corrected. "And that would be a waste of its power cells. Tell you what, let's hide in here."

He went to the old wardrobe which was in the middle of this area, and stepped inside. I shook my head with disgust. There was no way we could hide inside that small thing, and even if we could, it obviously wouldn't be much protection. I tugged angrily at the lock, but it wouldn't budge. Out of frustration, I entered the wardrobe to get the Captain, and shocked myself beyond words.

The inside of the wardrobe was quite massive, far more massive than should have been possible. I left the wardrobe to double check, and sure enough, it was just the size of a large dresser. I ran back inside. This was not at all like the outside. The walls were cold and metal, with odd round shapes adorning the walls. In the center of the room was an odd metal structure with all sorts of buttons and knobs around it. This was where the Captain was currently standing.

"She's going to be here any second," I said, frantically.

"The combined assault of the entire Brotherhood of Mutants couldn't break through those doors if they attacked at the same moment," the Captain said, calmly, running his 'screwdriver' over the wings. "Trust me, I know from trial and experience. Now hush for a moment so I can focus."

I paused for a moment, taking this all in.

"Great, just great," the Captain said, running searches over the wings. "They're riddled with a unique form of Chronotron Radiation, in much greater concentration than the crystal was. With this, I'll be able to trace their location much better. Now, where would you like to begin?"

"All this," I stammered. "Fits inside of a musty old wardrobe?"

"That must, as you call it," The Captain replied. "Is mistletoe, a potent magical ward against werewolves pixies, and trolls, and yes, the inside is bigger than the outside. What next?"

"It's not human, is it?"

"The word most people use is alien, but you're right, it's not human."

"And you're…"

"Yes, Glory. I'm an alien too. Is that a problem?"

"No, not really."

"This is my ship. It's called the TARDIS. T A R D I S. It stands for Time And Relative Dimensions In Space."

I nearly choke at that moment. Tears, I'm sorry to say began to flow. This was all too much.

"Perfectly natural," the Captain said. "Shock of another world, pulling on those tensions. Happens to everyone."

"Is Taryn dead?"

"Huh. Never really thought of that, to be honest with you."

"She was just a student, not even of age yet, and you tore off her face and her wings, which I might add, I did not know she had, after they copied her, and now you're letting what's left of her burn up?"

"Burn up?"

The Captain turned frantically back towards the wings where he saw them steadily burning with a red flame.

"Shit," he said in anger. "The computer wasn't done scanning the Chronotron signatures yet! We're going to have to work fast!"

That odd mechanical groan filled the air as the captain punched some buttons, mildly cursing to himself. In the middle of the metal sculpture, a column, and another in the middle of that rose, turned, and descended. Suddenly it stopped, and the Captain clapped his fingers in delight.

"Oh the cleverness of me" he said with that impish grin. "I was able to scan for a 56 match, which, for this area, would be more than enough and now we're here!"

He bolted out the doors before I could stop him.

"Are you touched in the head," I called out after him. "She's still out there and she's going to kill you!"

Acting on pure instinct, my feet moved by themselves, as trembling, I followed to what would surely be our mutual doom.


	5. Showdown

"Blast it all," The captain said, walking out along a boardwalk along the Hogsmeade River. I shook my head in confusion. This was not where we came from. "Signal must have been off."

"We've moved," I inquired. "Does this wardrobe fly?"

"Not exactly," The Captain said, rubbing his forehead. "It disappears there and reappears here. You wouldn't understand."

"So it's a bit like a portkey, isn't it," I said with an awkward smirk.

"Actually, I guess you would understand," the Captain said with a chuckle.

"Wait a second," I said, remembering the imposter. "What about that woman back at the Ice cream parlor?"

"I wouldn't worry about it," The captain said. "After a faerae's wings are severed, the mannis gland goes into a mild form of hemodynamic shock. She'll have lost her magic for a couple of days, and as such she is really in more danger there than any wizard or witch."

"I'll have to tell her parents the bad news," I said with a sigh. "I was in some way responsible for her, and I should be the one to tell them."

I looked at the captain as he gave me a look that reminded me of a dog that had just been asked to do a division problem.

"Taryn, the student they took," I said, aggravated. "We were responsible for her death and you've completely forgotten about her already!"

"We," The Captain said shaking his head. "I don't believe we murdered her or commanded Pyridia to impersonate her. So I fail to see just how we are supposed to be responsible."

"You know what, you were right," I said with disgust. "You aren't human."

"Look Glory," the Captain said with a stern tone. "If I did forget a little student named Erin…"

"It's Taryn," I corrected. I began to scold but he cut me off.

"If I failed to remember one little girl," the Captain said. "It's because I'm more concerned with stopping the overthrow and eventual destruction of your entire wizarding world, and the Muggle world along with it. When the lives of more than six billion people are on the line, the affairs of a single student just aren't that important. Is that okay?" I could hear the anger in his voice.

"Is that okay," I repeated with shock.

"Yes," the Captain said, answering my inadvertent question. "It is. "\

"If you aren't human," I said, calming down and trying to change the subject. "Why do you sound like you're from right across the pond?"

"There's a hell of a lot of planets that have a pond," the Captain answered. "And the majority of them have people living on all sides of the pond."

"Why a wardrobe," I asked. "I mean, why doesn't it look like a boat or a carriage or something?"

"It's a lot easier to fit into those compact parking spots like this," the Captain said with a smile. "Plus it's a great disguise since no one would care about a musty old piece of scrap wood, you know what I mean?"

I began to smile a bit. Something about the Captain just made me feel at ease, even in the most disconcerting of situations.

"Why would these fairies have it in for us," I asked the Captain. "I mean, so far as I know, we've gone out of our way to protect the magical creatures of this world."

"They're not from this world," The captain explained. "They are here to take this world from you. You're sitting on some choice real estate, Glory. There are a good number of armies trying to take this world at any given time. Not to mention how much magic you've injected into the core of this world. Not a lot of worlds with this high of a magic content. Faeraes need that for their lifestyles."

"But why do they need our world," I asked. "Wouldn't they be more comfortable on their own world?"

"It was destroyed in the war," the captain explained. "A good number of worlds fell to destruction that day, theirs included. They've been wandering around this universe looking for any world with a high enough level of magic and a low enough level of defense to invade, and it looks like they've found it."

"Can we beat them," I asked. The end of the world, good as it would be for readers, would not be a good thing. "I' mean there has to be a way, right?"

"Of course my dear," The Captain said with a smile. He produced a jeweled bronze egg shaped object. "This is a concentrated anti-magic warhead, developed during a war between wizards and the rest of humanity some time in the far off future. When detonated, this will fire a wave that instantly fires anything along the Mannis Wavelength, along which all magic flows."

"What about any bystanders," I implored. "That kind of attack could hurt a good number of witches and wizards you know."

"Not as many as will be hurt should we fail," The Captain noted. "I just have to figure out where they're hiding. It would have to have long metal antennas, probably with a circle at the end of equal distribution, and it would have to be an area strong in magic."

I looked over his shoulder at the abandoned Quidditch pitch. The old arena was used for local children to practice. It had been used for the school's matches until that new arena was made in celebration of the fall of the Dark Lord. Looking at it, though, I could tell that it was exactly the kind of area the Captain was describing.

"Captain," I said.

"What," he replied, looking at me in confusion. I nodded towards the pitch.

"What," he said; glancing at it, then back at me. "What are you going on about?"

"Captain," I said. "Look!"

"What is it," he said, glancing back at the pitch, then back at me again. "What are you trying to say?"

"I arched my eyebrows, and was about say something when the Captain got a look of pure epiphany on his face.

"Oh," he said, looking back at the pitch with a grin. "Great, just great. Let's get to it, shall we?"

He grabbed my hand and we took off running. Out of breath we made it right into the middle of the pitch. He pulled out his screwdriver and began to scan the area.

"They'd have to be right under our feet," the Captain said. "Is there any bunkers ort anything around here?"

I began looking when a thought popped into my head.

"The Marauder's Map," I said with a bit of memory.

"The what," the captain asked.

"It was this map this guy showed me when we went out during my fifth year," I explained. "It showed all these secret passages that shot underneath the school and the village. If I remember right, there was a shaft that opened when a lumos spell was cast on the middle hoop. If I hadn't lost my wand."

"Don't worry about it, kiddo," The Captain said, rushing towards the middle hoop. He fiddled with something on his screwdriver and used it on the hoop. With a shake, a shaft opened up right behind the hoop. "Coming Glory?"

We moved slowly down the shaft, which seemed to grow warmer to the touch. The Captain bunkered down behind a mound of dirt overlooking a vast room. I followed him closely.

"A Crystal Soul," the Captain noted, pointing towards an odd glowing blue crystal in the middle of the room. Across from it was Lucille Feranse, glowing with an odd blue light for some reason. The Tonks girl was nowhere to be seen.

"So what are you waiting for," I asked him. "Lob that egg and let's get out of here."

"I'm not here to slay them," the Captain said. "We've got to offer the diplomatic olive branch first."

We rose and moved quickly down to a balcony overlooking the room.

"I wish to commune with the Crystal Soul under the Peaceful Forums set forth by the High Council of Magi," the Captain said in a loud voice. The crystal pulsed and Lucille turned towards us. She rose into the air, pulsing with that blue energy. I ducked out of sight, not wanting to be seen by the woman who tried so many times to kill me.

"Then commune," Lucille said. "We are open to your words."

"You've taken possession of the Feranse woman," the Captain said. "Most interesting. May we sit down somewhere to talk?"

I looked down and saw Taryn and another student probably the Tonks girl huddled against a wall.

"The Children," I gasped as I ran to their side. "Are you girls all right."

"The crystal," Taryn said in a scared voice. "It speaks inside your head, and it can make you see these terrible things."

"They're alive," I whispered with a bit of a prayer.

"There was always that chance," the Captain said, moving past. "When the Faeraes take control they would need servants after all."

"You knew the children could be alive," I said with aggravation. "And you didn't think for one second to tell me?"

"This is not the proper time or the place for a squabble, is it, "the Captain said, moving towards a small table where Lucille was already sitting. I looked on in curiosity as I tended to the children.

"What name may I call you," the Captain asked Lucille.

"We are now known as Feranse-Ihrno, sharing consciousness and existence between the Elder Glyndis and the witch Lucille."

"A symbiotic relationship between two very different species," the Captain said with a scholarly tone. "Could be the first time I've ever seen that. It does explain rather well how you were able to infiltrate this world with such ease, and your ability to set up such events with this level of secrecy. But why don't I suggest you pack it in and try for another world, one where there are no innocent people you'll have to take out."

"My dear Captain," Feranse said with a condescending tone. "Our world was destroyed in the war. We are forced to take refuge for our own survival. Surely you would not cast us out so readily."

"Don't talk about refuge to me," the Captain said with no pity. "You know as well as I do that this is nothing less than an infiltration, and a planned overthrow!"

"Captain, you begin to irritate us," Feranse said, eyes flashing with that strong blue energy.

"These little people have barely begun to learn a few magic tricks," the Captain pleaded. "Hell, they've barely taken their first timid steps for that matter. I'm asking you, for them, please just find another world."

As he spoke he didn't see these two massive spiders come up behind him.

"Captain," I called out. "Look out!"

He looked just tin time for the spiders to grab him by either side and hold him up. The spider on the right searched through his jacket and pulled out the egg.

"He was hiding this from you, Mommy," the spider said in a high pitched, squeaking voice.

"A Salem Cocktail, Captain," Feranse said with hatred. "Now why would you have this?"

"I wasn't going to sue it," the Captain said. "I swear, it was just a little protection for me!"

"And what about bringing this," Feranse said, waving her hands, ripping away a stone wall to the left of me that was hiding the wardrobe.

"You don't understand," the Captain began.

"Is that your ship or not," Feranse said with anger.

"Yes it's mine," the Captain said. "But…"

"You wish to exterminate us like you did the rest of our people," Feranse hissed.

"That's not true," the Captain said, despair in his voice. "I fought in the war with all my strength as we all did. We could do nothing to save your world, I'm sorry. There were a lot of worlds that suffered that same fate!"

"What's happening, Captain," I asked.

"The presence of the TARDIS has angered the Crystal Soul," the Captain began.

"Yes, and now this world shall fall," Feranse said in a booming voice. "We hope you are proud of yourself, Captain. This happens today because of you! Feast your eyes on the end of the Wizarding world!"

She held her arms in the air and a massive quake shook the room. Feranse smiled as she waved another hand and a stone wall in front of us began to display what was happening. The hoops of the bitch were flowing with blue electricity. Suddenly, a massive portal was formed, and out form it poured massive numbers of fairies. They shot all over as the image split up to show us the events.

A few dozen of the fairies landed in the middle of the Great Hall at Hogwarts, burning the tables to a crisp.

"Invaders in the castle," McGonagall yelled. "Stand down or we will be forced to stop you."

The fairies smiled as they held out their hands and produced massive beams of elemental energy. They fired at the professors, incapacitating them as the students cried out in terror.

"It really is the end of the world," I said with a gasp.

"Glory, get the children into the TARDIS now," The Captain ordered. You need to get out of here!"

"I'm not going to leave you alone," I called back.

"Don't worry about me, Gloreander," the Captain urged. "Just go now!"

I urged the children to their feet and rushed them to the wardrobe.

"What good is that wood going to do for us," Taryn asked with gloom. "We're doomed, that's all there is to it, isn't there?"

"Don't worry about it," I said, just get in." They quickly moved in and I was about follow in after them when something hit my ankle. I looked down to see the anti-magic weapon. I picked it up and ran over to look as the Captain struggling against the spiders. Feranse had produced a long and shining blade and was moving closer to kill him. Thinking quickly, I shut the doors of the wardrobe and ran towards a staircase where I could look down. As I ran, I glanced back at the image of the attack outside.

Diagon Alley was ablaze with sparks of magical energy as wizards tried in vain to fend off the fairies. With a massive surge, they tore open the secret elevator shaft that led to the Ministry and poured down. To my surprise, I saw a massive team of Aurors waiting inside, led by none other than Commander Potter himself.

"They will not take this stronghold," he said, scar bleeding a bit as he raised his wands. "If Voldemort and his entire force of death Eaters could not manage to snatch this place, these creatures will not either."

He looked directly at the fairy in the front of the group.

"It's time you learned why they call me the Boy Who Lived," he said, readying his wand to fight.

As I ran down the staircase, something under my feet caused me to trip. I looked back to see an old Comet broom lying discarded on the ground. Smiling with triumph, I grabbed the broom and pushed off. As the Captain fought with the Spiders, I hovered just above the crystal. Just as Feranse raised her blade to kill, I threw the egg right at the crystal. With a stunning crash, a massive purple energy wave shattered the crystal and filled the room. The spiders cried out in pain and Feranse's blue energy dissipated. With an explosion they were all knocked against the wall. Shaking his head, the captain looked towards me as I began to fall. With a shock, I remembered that the weapon, he said, would wipe out all magic. Without magic, this broom could not stay afloat. Right as I was sure I was about to fall to my death, I felt the strong grasp of the captain.

"Hold on, kiddo," he said as he pulled me to safety. We exchanged glances of relief, and then ran back up the staircase. The Captain threw open the door of the wardrobe and we dove in. The Captain slammed the door behind us and ran to the console.

"What's going on out there," Taryn asked.

"Take a look at the view screen," the Captain gestured. Sure enough, a panel in the air was showing what was happening in ever bit as much detail as Feranse's image had. The hideout crumbled to the ground, causing the abandoned equipment to cave in with the soil. Elsewhere, the fairies around the world began evaporating into dust.

"Captain," I asked, wondering why this was happening. "Why are the fairies doing that?"

"Elementary, my dear Glory," the Captain said with a smile. "You fired the anti-magic grenade right into the center of the Crystal Soul that created them. You see, they weren't true Faeraes, but servants created by the Crystal Soul. Without their master, they simply return to the dust from whence they came."

The Captain punched some buttons on the console and the mechanical groan of the ship filled the air. Looking at the central columns, I saw them rising turning and falling. We were in flight again.

We exited the TARDIS just outside the main gates to the school. I could hear the jubilant cries of victory from within as the threat was over. I helped Taryn out.

"You know, you weren't a lot of help in there," I joked. As we headed towards the gates, I set the children down on a bench and turned back towards the Captain.

"Crystal Soul with an army of Faeraes," the captain said with a smile. "Piece of cake."

"You weren't very much of a hero in there yourself," I told the Captain. "If it hadn't have been for me, you would have been killed."

"Yeah," the Captain said with a sigh. "I would have been. Thank you, Gloreander."

We smiled warmly at each other.

"Well then," The Captain said. "I'd best be going. That is of course, unless you wanted to tag along. It's got service to areas far beyond England, you know. You can go to any star in the sky, on the house."

"He's not human," Taryn said with a gasp. "He's some sort of creature!"

"She isn't coming," the Captain said with a smirk. "So what do you say? You could stay here in England; writing up fluff pieces about cats chasing mice, or you could go anywhere and get the story of a lifetime. Several lifetimes, in fact."

"Is it always this hazardous," I asked.

"Every bloody time," the Captain said with a smile.

"I can't," I said hesitantly. "I've got to get my article to press, and someone's got to make sure these kids get back to the school safely."

"All right," the Captain said with an awkward smile. "Goodbye Gloreander."

He stepped back into the wardrobe and closed the door. The mechanical groan filled the air as the inside of the door began to glow with an inner light. With a gradually fading sound, the wardrobe disappeared. I sighed as I helped Taryn to her feet.

"Come on," I said. "We better get your friend to the Hospital wing."

We began to open the door when the mechanical groan returned. I turned around to see the Captain step out again.

"Did I mention it also travels to any time from Genesis to Armageddon," he asked.

I sighed as I turned to Taryn.

"Make sure she gets the medical attention she needs, okay," I told her.

"Where are you going," Taryn asked me.

"I don't know," I said with a smile. I brushed myself off and ran to the wardrobe.

"Well let's be off then," the Captain said with a smile.

"Yes," I said warmly back. "Let's be off."

Captain Who

"Glory"

The Captain…………………………………………………………..Nikola Shirakawa

Augustus Renaldi

Pyridia

Crystal Soul

Gloreander Zwiers………………………………………………………Allicile Cook

Lucille Feranse

Taryn Dorre


End file.
